SPECIAL REPORT: Maker of The West Winds gins, The Tailor Made Spirits Company, prides itself on providing a point of difference in the craft distilling space.
Maker of The West Winds gins, The Tailor Made Spirits Company, prides itself on providing a point of difference in the craft distilling space.
Established through a small distillery in Victoria Park in 2010, Tailor Made embraced a pioneering philosophy, particularly in the use of Australian botanicals such as sea parsley and bush tomato, to make its products standout.
That strategy quickly bore fruit; soon after its launch, Tailor Made’s West Winds Cutlass and West Winds Sabre gins had become so popular among bars and cafes that the distillery had to be relocated to a larger facility in Margaret River.
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As well as a bigger distillery, Tailor Made set up a gin bar within Leederville’s Bill’s Bar & Bites, a venue the company uses to showcase its products via a range of experimental and traditional cocktails.
However, it was a push into wholesaling that drove more rapid growth for the firm, which is the winner of the micro business category in this year’s Rising Stars.
In another innovative move, Tailor Made shifted its packaging and shipping operations to contract providers in Victoria, setting the base for rapid revenue growth by mitigating the costs of transporting product to east coast markets.
“Activities that are key, but not unique, are outsourced,” Tailor Made chief executive Paul White said.
Tailor Made now produces four varieties of West Winds gin, while also creating several seasonal products each year, as well as a range of pre-mixed gin and tonic varieties.
And while the company has pushed the boundaries with ingredients and been innovative with distribution, Tailor Made also embraced new-generation methods of capital raising, laying claim to Western Australia’s largest crowdfunded equity raise of more than $930,000, conducted in 2018.
“My commitment to produce leading craft spirits is matched by my undertaking to generate returns for the shareholders that are supporting us,” Mr White said.
“It requires constant evaluation not only of our products, but also an evolving operating model so that we are efficient, cost-effective and scalable while maintaining our high quality.”
